Death of a Lion
by DivineRose2392
Summary: Though he was taken, he was still her lion. Warning: This story is very sad, therefore, have a tissue on you if you're an emotional person. Squaffie.


Death of a Lion

The young woman's eyes scanned the computer screen. She tucked her short, black hair behind her ears, and continued to read what was on the screen. The glow of the it glowed on her face gently and showed a reflection of the screen in her eyes. She pressed the down arrow on the keyboard, and scrolled down. She typed in a few words, and then pressed the enter button.

"We should have no problems now," she said quietly. She checked the clock on the computer screen. It was about 2:37 in the morning. The young woman rubbed her eyes. She needed to stay awake at least until she got to her room. Her eyes looked at her tired hands. Her eyes were a soft violet. She never had a mean look in them.

"Hey, Yuffie," someone said from the entrance of the room. Yuffie looked over her shoulder, and saw Riona standing there. They gave each other a small smile. "I came to check on you, just to make sure you weren't dead."

"Nope, I'm still alive," Yuffie said. Riona was a nice person. She always cared for others, and helped out a lot. She listened to every one of Yuffie's problems, and answered all her questions. Yuffie didn't find her as a role model anymore, but she did was she was a little kid. She also had Aerith there, too. Riona sighed, but still kept her smile. She had long black hair that went down to her waist. She had soft brown eyes. There was rarely any anger in them. She was also Leon Leonhart's girlfriend.

Leon Leonhart. His real name is Squall, but he then changed it to Leon for unknown reasons. At least Yuffie didn't know why. Leon was a handsome young man. He was in his mid-twenties, while Yuffie was only twenty-years-old. Leon had a nice strong build to his body. Broad, solid chest. Arms that had nice muscle to them, and were smooth if you run your finger gently on them. He had shoulder length brown hair. Leon's hair was long for a guy, and Yuffie always thought of a lion's main when she saw it. Lion. That's what she thought of him as. He was very brave, and strong as one, too. When he fights, he fights like a mighty lion. A king. Whenever he's very angry, his voice is very loud. It sounds like a lion roaring. Whenever he smiled, Yuffie always thought of him purring. It always brought a small smile to her face to see him smile. He had gorgeous blue eyes. They were just the right color. Just right for him.

Leon was Yuffie's fighting partner. Those two go compete in tournaments, such as the Coliseum in Ancient Greece. Hercules was always up for a challenge. Whenever a street tournament was being held, Yuffie would beg Leon to join her in the tournament. She wouldn't fight without him. He would sometimes give in. They have always won the tournaments, unless they don't compete in them. They would spar at times. They still had to be on high alert, even if Sora did defeat Xemnas. Heartless showed up once in a while. It was no challenge, but as Aerith said, "Have no expectations. You never know what's going to happen." It was like taking a first step on a staircase, and not knowing what was upstairs. But you should continue anyway and not expect what you had in mind. Leon would usually beat Yuffie in a spar. He has more fighting experience than her, even if she was a professional ninja. Whenever Yuffie won a match against him, it felt like he was just toying with her---going easy. She wanted a real challenge. She wanted to face the true lion. Leon would show his true lion when in tournaments or battles with Heartless, but not when he fought her. Leon use to be mean to Yuffie. Now he was easy going and talked to her more. She hated how he was soft on her in battle though. But if he was soft on her, then why would she lose?

"Is anyone else up?" Yuffie asked as she pulled up the shut down button on the screen. She clicked the button to turn off the computer, and then shut the monitor off.

"No, just us," Riona answered.

"I see..."

"Come, I'll walk with you to your room, just so you don't fall asleep on the way back."

"Heh, thanks."

Yuffie and Riona began to walk back to Merlin's house. If you're thinking they all slept in that house, then you're wrong. They added on to Merlin's house. They added on a lot. Each person had their own room. It was too big nor small. It was just right. There was two bathrooms---one for boys and one for girls. And then, their small kitchen. They added on an extra room, just incase Sora dropped in, or someone else they knew came by. Sora comes by very little.

"Riona?" Yuffie asked, breaking the silence.

"Yes?"

"I was wondering if you could take over for me tomorrow at the computers? I got a few more to work on."

"I thought you were done?"

"I wish. I just put the virus guard up for now."

"Sure, I will. Where are you going?"

"Well, this morning Cloud asked me if I could help him and Cid with some new Gummi Ship."

"Cloud? Seems unlikely of him to help Cid with the Gummi Ship..."

"That's what I was thinking. Cid is very serious about this Gummi Ship. He says it's going to be his best model yet. I guess he needs all the help he can get. Cid that I would be useful for running back and forth to get him whatever it is he needs."

"Oh, I see. Well, I'll take over for you. I may get Tifa or Aerith to help me."

"Thanks." Yuffie yawned. She tripped over her own shoes, but caught herself from balancing. Riona laughed.

"We better get you to bed before you sleep on the floor."

"I could sleep anywhere at the moment."

Riona laughed again. They finally made it to the house. Yuffie bid goodnight to Riona. She closed her bedroom behind her, and crashed on her bed. She kicked off her shoes, feeling pain in her body. Her eyes hurt the most from looking at the screen all night long. This morning, she was sprinting to different places, being everyone's messenger. Especially for Cid. She almost got hit by a pile of stones, because someone knocked them over on accident. She also had to climb a hill to get to one of the construction sites to deliver a tool box. The hill was very far away, and it was very high. Yuffie was on her feet all day.

She didn't want to change her clothes. But with all the energy she had left in her, she stood up. Yuffie took off her clothes slowly, and put her pajamas on like she was in slow motion. Yuffie pulled her covers back, and fell down into her bed. "Oh my God." She pulled the covers over her. "This feels like heaven."

The night went by very fast. Next thing Yuffie knew, she heard a loud knock on her door. She was startled by the sound, and her heart leapt. Her eyes shot open, and she saw darkness. The covers were still pulled over her.

"Hey," a male's voice said through the door. Yuffie closed her eyes. It took a while for the voice to click on in her mind. It was Leon's. "Get up. It's 12:36."

"No way," Yuffie whispered to herself.

"Yuffie? Are you in there?"

Yuffie didn't answer. She was still shocked that she slept in so late. The door opened, and she poked her head out from underneath the covers. Leon was standing there in jeans, and a black t-shirt. Though they were just ordinary clothes, they still made him look like a god. His blue eyes stared at her with a curious look.

"Hi," Yuffie said.

"Come on, get up. Cid needs help."

"You're helping him, too?"

"Well, I had to, because you weren't there. And now, I have to stay there, because he said that he's going to need all the help he could get."

"My bad. I didn't mean for you to take my place."

"It's alright. Riona said you were working very late last night. So I didn't bother to wake you up."

"You could've."

"Nah. Now, get up."

Yuffie lazily rose like a zombie from her bed.

"Yes, Master," she joked. Leon rolled his eyes. He turned to walk out of the room. Yuffie could've sworn that he smiled on his way out. Yuffie walked down the hallway, and entered the bathroom. She cleaned herself up, and changed into some clothes to work in. In the house, they built a basement...more like a giant garage that can fit a few fitting jets, or maybe the whole town of Radiant Garden. Yuffie went in the kitchen, and opened a door that was on the other side. There was a pair of stairs that led into what looked like pure darkness. You only saw a few stairs and then it was pitch black. Yuffie carefully walked down the steps, trying not to miss and step and fall as she stepped in the darkness. She felt her foot hit a platform, and she knew that she needed to turn to the left. There, she saw light. There were four or five more steps she needed to step down.

As she stepped down, she peeked in the garage. There were so many tools on the walls and work benches. A lot of pieces to ships and other mobile things were scattered along the floor. Yuffie stared up at the high ceiling. Cid had a catwalk up there. The catwalks they use in the theaters where people usually control the lights for the show. There were stairs that led to it. Yuffie saw Cloud walking across it with a towel over his shoulder and a wrench in his free hand.

Cloud was a good looking person. A god-like look to him to. Blond, spiky hair. Blue eyes that were to die for. They would have you mesmerized if you stare into them too long. Yuffie thought of him as a wolf. He was quiet, and quick at moving. He was a strong fighter that never gave up when in combat. He's quiet, just like a wolf when they move or hide in the snow to shield themselves from harm. Some people say that he has a cold heart, because he never cares. But do they have him wrong. Cloud must be one of the most gentlest people that Yuffie has ever known. He cares for everyone. Cloud doesn't admit it, but he loves it when he's around the children in town. He feels good when he sees them happy, instead of screaming or hiding in horror, trying to protect themselves. He cares for Aerith...a lot. Though he rarely talks, everyone knows he's in love with her. Cloud was like an older brother to Yuffie. Always around to lend a hand, and always there to just talk to.

"Hey, I'm here!" Yuffie called, finally walking in.

"Yuffie!" Cid called from somewhere. "Come over here!"

Yuffie walked over to where she thought she heard Cid's voice. She approached a giant ship, that looked like it was under construction. There was more than one tool box lying on the ground. One was filled with just different sizes of screws and bolts. Another was filled with screwdrivers and hammers. And the other one Yuffie saw was filled with tools she didn't the names of. There was a forth one, but it was closed.

"Cid? Are you here?" Yuffie called. She heard someone curse, and realized that it was Cloud.

"Aww, man," he said. He was working on putting the windshield on the ship. He put his finger in his mouth to stop the bleeding.

_Sure, Cloud, that's going to stop it, _Yuffie thought, looking up at him. "Cid!" she yelled.

"Hold on, Yuffie, hold on!" Cid yelled from inside the ship. She then heard him grumble, "Damn kids...never patient." Yuffie was amazed as part of the ship opened, and a pair of steps folded out. Cid came walking down the steps. "Leon! Bring the stairs back up, would ya?" Without a response, Yuffie saw Leon on the side of door frame. He pressed a button on the wall. the stairs folded up slowly. As the did, Yuffie stared at Leon. She didn't mean to stare, but she couldn't help it. Leon's eyes glance at her. Yuffie's heart started to race. His eyes were soft, and not as cold as they usually were. The stairs finally came up all the way, and the door closed. "Pretty neat, huh?" Cid asked.

"Huh, what?" Yuffie asked, shaking her head. "Yeah, that's pretty neat. How do you get the stairs back down from the outside?"

"Well," Cid said, walking next to where the stairs would land, "see this button here?" He pointed to a square button that didn't stick out. You just push it, and the stairs come out. He pushed the buttons and the stairs came back down.

"Come on, Cid," Leon said, poking his head around the corner of the frame. "I just put them up, and I'm doing construction on them."

"Sorry, Leon," Cid said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Showing the kid here how to bring them down from the outside." Yuffie looked at Cid. She hated it when he called her a kid. She didn't say anything though. Leon was gone by the time she looked back up at him. The stairs were slowly going back up. The finally closed.

"So what do you need help with?" Yuffie asked, still looking at where Leon's head was.

"Well, as soon as Cloud is done putting the windshield on, You're going to help me paint the ship. It's going to be a medium green color. As soon as Leon, and if Cloud gets in the ship, finishes fixing the inside of the ship, then you're going to help them paint the inside. Or you can help them finish building the inside when we're done. Shall we get started?"

"I thought you said to wait for Cloud to finish?"

"Doesn't mean we can't paint the side."  
"Then we should start."

Cid and Yuffie put what looked like surgical masks over their mouths and noses. They started to paint the ship. Yuffie stood on a ladder, and airbrushed the ship. She was taking her time. She saw Leon open the door, and let stairs come out, and he would go back and forth to get something. She tried not to glance over. When Yuffie and Cid were done with the first side, it was around 3:30.

"We should take a break," Cid said, "and then continue with the second side and back. Cloud is done with the windshield, so we're also ready to paint the front."

"Okay," Yuffie said as she took off her mask. She placed it next to the green paint can. She went upstairs to the kitchen to get a drink. She saw Cloud there, putting a band-aid on his finger. "You okay?"

"Yeah, just hurt my finger by cutting it on the edge of the windshield. That glass is not easy to break, but it's pretty sharp to cut," Cloud said, tossing the paper of the band-aid away.

"Are you and Leon almost done with the inside?"

"Yeah. We have to install a few screens, and that's including the map." Cloud yawned. He shook his head to wake himself up.

"What time did you get up?"

"Around six...My God am I tired. Well, I gotta get back to work. See ya."

"Kay, see ya, Cloud."

Cloud walked back downstairs. Yuffie poured herself a glass of water. She drank it all down, because her throat was as dry as a desert. Yuffie refilled her glass, and brought it downstairs with her. Cid was painting the back of the ship now. Yuffie saw Cloud climb in the front of the ship, since the windshield was up. Yuffie heard music playing from the inside. It was some rock band that she couldn't think of. She was guessing that either Cloud or Leon installed the radio in the ship, and was testing it out. She heard the volume being turned up really loud and then went down really quietly. The volume continued to do that, until Cid yelled, "Damn it Cloud or Leon! Stop messing with the volume!"

"Sorry!" Cloud called.

Yuffie smiled as she set her glass down on a workbench. She never knew that Cloud had a humor side to him. She guessed it sort of clicked on his brain to play with the radio's volume, and make Cid mad, just to humor himself. Yuffie put her surgical-like mask on, and went to the other side of the ship. She started to airbrush it gently. She didn't feel like painting fast, so she took her time. She heard a few curse words, once in a while, from one of the guys, but didn't bother to ask if they were okay. Cid finally finished the back, and helped Yuffie with the other side of the ship. He already airbrushed the wings of the ship black. Yuffie quickened her pace. She realized that she had to paint the roof too.

"Hey, Cid!" Leon yelled from inside the ship. He leaned out of the open windshield. "Cloud and I are going to start painting the inside!"

"Alright!" Cid yelled, not looking at Leon. Leon disappeared into the ship. Yuffie told Cid that she was going to go paint the roof of the ship. Cid didn't say anything, but nodded. Yuffie climbed down from her ladder, and went over to the stairs that led up to the catwalk. She hopped over the railing, trying not to drop her airbrush gun, and then walked to the back. She began to airbrush it, carefully not getting any paint on her shoes or herself. It didn't take her too long. Cid was working on the front of the ship by the time Yuffie was done with the top.

She carefully walked over the top of the flipped open windshield, and jumped to the catwalk railing. She climbed over it, and then walked down stairs.

"Hey, Cid?" Yuffie called.  
"Yeah?" he said.

"What about the bottom of the ship?"

"I already painted that last night. Why don't you go helped them inside the ship?"

She could've just gone through the open windshield. So, she went back upstairs on the catwalk, hopped over the railing, and carefully got in the ship. She looked around. She was very spacious inside. The guys already colored the front of the ship. A lot of colors and designs were carefully painted.

"Wow, guys," Yuffie said, walking towards the back. She saw Cloud painting the walls. "You did great on the designs."

"Leon did the designs, I just painted them," Cloud said.

"Well, you both did a fantastic job."

Cloud gave her a small smile. His smiles are so rare. Maybe because they seem so perfect. His teeth were so white, that they could probably light up a dark room. Yuffie smiled back at him. A lot of people said that her smile cheered them up, and would put a smile on their face. A little girl came up to her once and said, "Thank you for giving me hope, that there is still happiness in this world." Yuffie was surprised to her it come out of a girl that looked like she was only seven. Or maybe it was just Yuffie's imagination, and it was her inner child saying that.

Yuffie walked to the back. She found Leon sitting on the floor, carefully painting some details on the wall. It was amazing. Absolutely beautiful. He was painting the solar system. So many beautiful colors. Yuffie looked closely.

"Huh," she said.

"What?" Leon asked, not looking up from his work.

"It's like you've been on the Rings of Saturn."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because you have so much detail on here...I never knew that you could paint so well."

"You never asked."

Yuffie sighed and smiled a small smile. Leon looked up at her. His look was neither happy nor angry. It was very calm.

"You know, Leon," Yuffie said very calmly. She smiled a little bit bigger, her teeth flashing at him. Leon's cheeks turned a very pale pink. "I learn something new about you every week. Like last week, I learned that if you had a favorite flower, it would be roses. And now this week, I learned that you're an artist."

Leon smiled a bit. Just like Cloud, his smiles were rare. His smile was perfect...for Yuffie at least. A smile of a god, even if it was a very small twitch to the lips, telling her it's a smile. She loved when he gave her that kind of smile. He only used it for her. It was like he only saved them for her.

"Same with you," he said.

"What did you learn about me? I mean, you should know everything about me, because I'm loud and obnoxious---"

"You've become a lot more mature over time. That's one thing I've learned over the years. But, what I've learned about you last week is that you talk in your sleep sometimes."

Yuffie gasped and said, "You little---"

"I'm not a pervert nor stalker. It's not my fault when I pass by your room sometimes at night that you say random things."

"Like?"

"Last week you were quietly singing Jingle Bells, when it's October. The next night, you were reciting lines from 'Romeo and Juliet'. You would be great as Juliet."

Yuffie blushed in embarrassment and she had a shocked look on her face. She's read the book so many times, the lines were locked in her head forever.

"Are you being bluffing?" she asked. Her cheeks grew darker.

"No," Leon said, going back to his painting. His small smile showed some amusement. He usually likes it when Yuffie goes into shock. Her face was priceless.

"You have to. I don't talk in my sleep!"

"Yuffie, I don't joke." He sounded serious. Yuffie sighed. She gave up.

"Do you need any help?" she asked quietly. She looked at the floor like she was ashamed of how she talks in her sleep.

"Yeah," Leon said. Yuffie looked at him in amazement. He never asks for help. "You could get me a glass of water."

"I meant with the painting."

"Uh..." Leon looked at the wall. "You can paint the Red Spot on Jupiter, but after my glass of water...please."

Yuffie scoffed.

"Lazy," she said, walking away. She got out of the ship through the open windshield. Yuffie proceeded down the stairs of the catwalk, and then went up the stairs to the kitchen. As she began to pour Leon's glass of water, Aerith walked in.

"Oh, hello, Yuffie," she said with a smile.

Aerith was the most gentlest person on the earth...or at least to Yuffie she was. She had long brown hair that was tied back either in a ponytail or braid. Her eyes were a lovely shade of green. They were bright, and always had a gentle look to them. Aerith was a quiet type. Her voice had a soft, quiet tone to it. She helped out tremendously, especially when Cid or Leon was frustrated with the computers. She also helped with healing. After a battle, she would heal the wounds of everyone who fought. Aerith is very kind, and is never mean. She was in love with Cloud. She doesn't say much about him. They're never seen together..._never_. They always know when to get together. It's always perfect timing when no one is around.

"Hey, Aerith," Yuffie said back with a smile.

"What are you doing?"

"Getting a glass of water for Leon."

"Oh, okay. Is he being nice to you?"

"Yes...why do you ask?" Yuffie asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, ever since you guys had that major fight---"

"Leon is treating me fine. We get along great. I learn something new about him every week, so we get along just fine."

"That's good to hear...Yuffie?"

"Yes?"

"Are you in love with him?"

Yuffie gaped. She's never been asked that question before. How can she? Leon has a girlfriend, and he loves her and only her very much.

"Of course not!" Yuffie said as calmly as possible. "I could never love Leon. He has a girlfriend and he's nine years older than me. Too many years away for me. And...I like Vincent!"

"Vincent Valentine? Yuffie, he's---"

"Don't say it...please."

Yuffie closed her eyes. She hated when people said that line, "Yuffie, Vincent is dead." Vincent Valentine was Yuffie's love interest. She remember that just before they went into battle, he gave her a kiss for good luck. The battle was a blur, and all she can remember was him dying in her arms as he got stabbed from behind. Yuffie dreaded that day. She doesn't want to be reminded of what happened. But Leon reminds her of Vincent, because of the way he looked at her. Leon smiles the exact small smile as Vincent did. It was like Vincent twin, though they looked nothing alike.

"I'm sorry," Aerith apologized.

"No, no," Yuffie said, waving her hand. "It's alright."

"Yuff, I just want to say: Don't hurt yourself."

"I promise, I won't. Well, I better go back and give Leon his glass of water, before he thinks I did something to it."

Aerith smiled.

"Okay. You go then."

Yuffie smiled and nodded. She went back to the ship. She approached Leon.

"What took so long?" he asked.

"I was poisoning it," Yuffie joked, handing Leon his glass of water. He took it.

"Very funny," he said sarcastically.

"Actually, I was talking to Aerith." Yuffie picked up a small paint brush, and began to paint the Red Spot on Jupiter. It was silent between them. Since Yuffie was done with the Red Spot, Leon told her what to paint next. That was the only time they would speak. Yuffie felt like she was going to fall over for being so exhausted. She carefully painted Pluto and Neptune. She helped Leon paint Venus, and them Mars. Leon finished the Earth as Yuffie painted Mercury. They finished up the planets quickly, and the they both worked on the Sun. Leon looked up at Yuffie as she was painting quickly.

"Yuffie," he said.

"Huh?" she asked. She stopped painting and looked at him. Leon stood up from his spot. Yuffie looked into his eyes.  
"Easy strokes."

"Huh?" she asked again. Leon put his hand on hers. He started to move it back and forth gently and slowly.

"Easy and soft strokes," he said.

"Oh, sorry. I'm just tired and want to get this done."

"Yeah, it is pretty late."

Leon let go of Yuffie's hand, and sat back down in his spot. He continued to paint the Sun's rays of light.

"I think Cid and Cloud left already."

"Yeah, probably," Leon said. He looked at the digital clock on the computer screen behind them. It was 11:23.

"Heh, time flied by quickly."

"Yeah. We just got to finish the Sun and we're done."

"Okay...you painted the moon already?"

"Yeah, I painted it before you came and help."

"Oh..."

The continued to paint in silence. It didn't take too long to finish. Yuffie did as Leon said with the soft and easy strokes. When they were done, Yuffie and Leon stood back to look at the work they did. It was beautiful. "I think we did a lovely job."

"Yeah," Leon said, "thanks for helping."

"You're welcome."

The two of them walked to the front of the ship. The windshield was left open for them. Yuffie took a seat in one of the five seats that were placed up front.

"Come on, Yuffie---"

"These are so comfortable. Have you sat in them yet?"

"No..."

"You have to! They're so comfortable."

"Yuffie, come---"

"Come on, Leon. Sit down. You need to feel what it's like!"

Leon sighed. He gave up. He sat down next to her. Yuffie spun her chair around towards him.

"Alright, let's---Oh...these are pretty comfortable," Leon said.

"See, I told ya so!"

"Alright, let's go---"

"Aww, come on, Leon. We barely get to talk."

"What do you want to talk about?"

"I want to...I want to know you better, because if I'm going to be fighting with you, then I should get to know you."

"Is this to keep your mind off of---"

"Maybe..." Yuffie looked down at her shoes. "I need not to think of him. I need to know someone else better so he'll stop haunting me."

"Haunting?"

"Yeah...sometimes Vincent comes and visits me in my dreams." Yuffie smiled.

"What did you guys do?"

"Well, that one period of time, I was off with the SeeD army. Cloud was with me, and Aerith stayed back home. When we were in battle, I was almost going to get killed, when out of nowhere, this man jumped in front of me, and took the stab for me right in the left side of his chest. After the battle, I stuck by him and helped him get cured. He was a very interesting person. He seemed quiet, but he was very interesting."

"Did you love him?"

"I..." Yuffie sighed. "I did. I didn't show it, though. He was...a really good person."

"So you two acted like you were friends?"

"Pretty much. He finally revealed to me that he liked me right before we were going to go out on the battle field. He kissed me! But...he died on the battle field...right in my arms." Yuffie pulled her knees up under her chin, and wrapped her arms around her legs. "I don't love him anymore, or course, since he's dead, but I'll always remember him."

"Huh. Interesting."

"Yeah...Cloud and Aerith literally had to drag me like a little kid away from Vincent's gravestone. I felt really stupid."

"How old were you?"

"About eighteen."

"I see..."

"What about you?"

"Sort of the same story as you except my person didn't die and our battle wasn't as big. My story happened when I was seventeen."

"I guess I know your story, then."

"Pretty much. I'm really sorry about what happened to Vincent."  
"Eh, it's alright. It was two years ago. I'm over it."

"Two years seems long to you?"

"Yeah. I get over things easily. I've learned how to. Not too hard for me."

"But why?"

"Can't be stuck in the past, or you'll never grow up and move on. You can be stuck in your thoughts, because you think of them, and no one can see what they are. But not getting over something in the past...whole different subject."

"You're more mature than I though you would be."

"Heh, I guess you really don't know that little, annoying ninja anymore, huh?" Yuffie asked with a smile. Leon gave her his small smile.

"I guess not. But I kind of miss the old one. _Kind of_."

Yuffie laughed quietly.

"Why?" she asked.

"Because, now that you're not usually up my ass, asking me questions, it's gotten pretty quiet and boring."

"Well, I was thinking that you needed some privacy, so I left you alone. Besides, Cid has me working on the computers and such."

"You know you can always take a break and at least come and say hi."

"I'll keep that in mind."

"You know, Yuffie," Leon said quietly, "I'm saying this as a friend---"

"And?"

"And I like to say that it's good to see you smile."

"It feels good to smile."

Sometimes, Yuffie smiles without a cause. Or she just smiles to cover up her sadness and anger. Leon was right. She has matured, but not as much as on the inside. She still wants to whine and cry into someone's shoulder if something goes wrong. Leon tilted his head a bit to the side.

"Something wrong?"

"Actually," Yuffie sighed, "there is. But I don't know how to put it into words...I'm surprised."

"About?"

"That you knew something was wrong. It's just..." Yuffie sighed again. "It's just I'm confused and tired."

"Do you want to tell me about it?"  
Yuffie's face turned a bright pink. She looked at Leon.

"Um, maybe later..."

"That's fine. If you ever want to talk, just ask. Except when Cid has me working around the clock."

"Right."

Leon stood up. He extended his hand out to Yuffie. She stared at his hand. "I don't have a skin disease, you know. Come on." Yuffie unwrapped her arms from around her legs, and set her feet on the ground. She slowly reached out her hand, and put her hand in Leon's. His hands were so warm, and bigger compare to hers. Leon supported her to her feet. Yuffie tripped over her own shoes, and fell right into Leon. Her eyes grew wide, as she found her cheek pressed up against his chest. Their fingers were intertwined. Yuffie felt that her free hand was also on Leon's chest. His free arm was wrapped around her waist. Yuffie looked up at Leon as he looked down at her.

"S-sorry," Yuffie stuttered.

"It's alright," Leon said gently.

"Uh..." She felt very uncomfortable. He had a girlfriend, and here he was, holding her closely. Yuffie backed away from the hold slowly. "Felt a little---"

"Uncomfortable?"

"Uh-huh."

"It was an accident." Leon sighed. Yuffie's face turned red. "Come on, let's go. It's really late."

Yuffie just nodded, and followed Leon out the opened windshield. They were silent, until Yuffie stopped at her room.

"Well, see ya in the morning," she said. Leon looked at her, and gave her the infamous small smile that she loved.

"Night." He then walked away. Yuffie went in her room, and closed the door quietly behind her.

0-0-0

The next morning, Yuffie woke up at 11:48 in the morning. She got ready quickly, and went into Merlin's room (which is the entrance to the house) for today's assignment. She went up to Cid, who was working on the computer.

"Morning," she said. Cid turned to her.

"Morning, kiddo," he said. "Your assignment today is to..." Cid looked at a piece of paper that was taped to the side of the giant monitor. "You are to help Leon and Cloud put up the fence for the playground."

"Okay, thank you, Cid!"

"You're welcome."

Yuffie ran off to the playground's location. She saw Leon and Cid just finishing up with setting up the swings.

"Oww! Jesus!" Cloud shouted, dropping the drill.

"What?" Leon asked.

"If I keep hurting my hands, I won't be able to feel anything again!"  
"What did you do?"

"Cut it on a jagged piece of metal."

"Right."

"Look at my finger!"

"No..."

"Look at it!"

"Okay, okay!" Leon looked up a Cloud's cut finger. It was funny how Cloud had a very serious face on, had a serious voice, but was whining like a little kid. "It's not that bad."

Cloud pulled a band-aid out of his pocket, and put it on his cut. Yuffie walked up to them.

"Morning," she said.

"Hey, Yuff," Leon said, ruffling her hair.

"Hey, Yuffie," Cloud said as Leon handed him the drill. Cloud began to drill in the last bolt to the swing set. Cloud got down from the ladder. "Alright, let's go put up that fence."

The three of them got to work. It was one of those wired fenced, that was only two feet tall. Cloud didn't waste his time holding up the fence. He went ahead, and drilled the bolts in the slots of the fence polls, so they would stay together. A few hours later, they finished putting up the fence. They stood back at their work.

"This is really good playground, you guys," Yuffie said. "You did an excellent job putting it up."

"Yeah, it's going to open tomorrow," Cloud said. "It's going to be great."

"Thanks for helping us, Yuffie," Leon said, "with the fence."

"Hey, no problem. Cid assigned me to do it."

"HELP!" someone shouted. "SOMEONE HELP!"

The three of them looked at each other. Cloud picked up his Buster Sword that was laying on the grass, and Leon picked up his Gunblade that was laying beside Cloud's. Yuffie already had her shruikens tucked away. The three of them took off. They finally came to the woman who was screaming. Some other people were there too.

"Ma'am, what's wrong?" Cloud asked.

"Those monsters are back! Those awful, black monsters!" she shouted.

"Heartless," Yuffie growled. She took off.

"Yuffie! Wait!" Leon shouted. He took off after her. Cloud followed. Yuffie stopped as she reached the Great Mow. Her eyes grew wide as she saw thousands of Heartless below. "Yuffie---!" Leon saw what she saw. "Oh my God..."

"Oh Lord," Cloud said from behind them. "Let's go!" The three of them jumped down from the ledge.

"Good luck!" Yuffie yelled. The men nodded, and the three separated. Yuffie fought with everything she got. She also got thrown around like a rag doll. There were too many of them. She found herself back to back to Leon. "We can't fight them all!" she said.

"Yuffie! Leon! Cloud!" they heard someone yell.

"Sora!" Yuffie yelled with delight. The boy with spiky brown hair jumped down from the ledge. He pulled out his Keyblade.

"Come on, Heartless!" he yelled. "Come and get me!" Some of the Heartless started to charge towards him. Leon and Yuffie began to fight again.

It seemed like hours. This battle would never end. Never. Yuffie was about to fall on her knees and give up. As she killed one Heartless, another one threw her to the ground. She couldn't get up. All the bones in her body were aching. The Heartless that attacked her raised its sword.  
"Yuffie!" Leon yelled. She looked up, and saw him right in front of her. The sword pierced right through the left side of his chest.

"Leon!" Yuffie screamed. He fell down right into her arms. Cloud came up and finished up the Heartless. "Cloud! Hurry! Get Aerith!" Cloud finished off the Heartless in his way, and Sora did the same. "Leon, please stay with me!" Yuffie was crying at this point. She held his hand. "Please! Leon!"

0-0-0

Yuffie was sitting on the floor, her back against the wall, of the hospital. She had her knees pulled up to her chest, and her arms were wrapped around her legs. Her arms and legs had a few bandages on them. She had a bandage wrapped around her head, but you could see it much, because her hair was over it. Her eyes were red from crying, and her nose was stuffy. She was staring at the door in front of her. It was the door to Leon's room. She didn't want to go in, because she didn't want to invade on his and Riona's privacy. So, she was patient enough to wait.

The door opened, and Riona stepped out.  
"Oh, honey," she said. She pulled Yuffie up. "You could've came in."

"Nah," Yuffie said, "I didn't want to intrude on your privacy with Leon. It would've been rude of me."

"Yuffie, thank you so much." Riona kissed Yuffie's head. "Thank you so much for saving Leon for me."

"But I didn't heal---"

"True, you didn't heal him. But you kept him alive. You covered up his wound with your headband. You gave him confidence by yelling, 'Stay alive, Leon! Hold on!' You are a life savor. Leon is very lucky to have a good friend like you, and so am I. Thank you so much, dear."

"You're welcome," Yuffie said with a small smile.

"You can go see him now. I bet he'll be pleased."

"Thank you." Yuffie hugged Riona, and then went into Leon's room. He was in a hospital gown. He had a few tubes hooked up to him; not too many to make him look like he was old. None on his face, which was good. Some on his hands and arms. His face was as beautiful as ever. Leon looked at Yuffie with his breathtaking eyes. He gave her, her favorite smile.

"Hey," he said quietly.

"Hey," Yuffie said back. She sat down in the chair next to the bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Strange. I've never been in a hospital...Yuffie?"

"Yes?" She had tears in her eyes.

"Thank you so much for everything. Thank you for getting me here. If not...then I wouldn't be here." Yuffie had tears streaming down her face. "What's wrong?"

"I'm...I'm..." She couldn't get the words out. "I'm s-so glad that you're here," she said through her crying. "You have no idea how happy I am to have you here. I have to say, I am happier than Riona. Words can't describe how happy I am! I thought you were going to go, Leon. I thought you would die just like Vincent! I didn't want that to happen again!"

"Yuffie," Leon said softly.  
"I'm sorry. I don't mean to cry like this."

"Come here." Leon patted the side of the bed gently. Yuffie shook her head. "Come on. I sat in the chair for you. You could at least sit here." Yuffie got up, and sat down slowly. She couldn't help it. She laid down next to him. Leon put an arm around her shoulder, and pulled her close. Yuffie put her hand on his chest and cried some more.

"I can't believe you're here!" she cried.

"Shh," Leon said softly. He's never been that soft to her. Never. "It's okay." Yuffie looked up at Leon. "You wanted to talk to me about something."

"Huh?"

"From last night."

"You don't want to know..."

"Please, tell me."

Yuffie's heart began to race. She felt her face go red. But she had to tell him now. It was the perfect time, because no one was around. She wiped the tears from her eyes and looked up at Leon again. He was still looking at her softly.

"I'm in love with a man who can never love me back," she whispered. Leon still kept his soft gaze. He then kissed her forehead.

"I knew it all along," he whispered.

"How?"

"Because the silence that always goes on between us when we're working gives me a hint that you're too nervous to talk. And when I was bringing up the stairs, I caught your gaze. And, the fact that you stuck by my side the whole time when I was down. Plus, you wanted us to be alone, so you gave me and Riona some time alone."

"The last thing you said is a no. I was thinking about some things out there. I was wondering if you were alright."

"I'm alright. Yuffie?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't worry about me. I worry about you."

"Then don't worry about me," Yuffie said with a smile. They laughed quietly.

"Hey, can you get me a glass of water?"

"Yeah." Yuffie got up and poured him a glass of water.

"No poisoning it, right?" Leon joked. Yuffie handed him his glass of water. Leon took a sip, and then put it on side table next to him. Yuffie laid back down next to him. It was late at night. Yuffie realized that time went by quickly when she was sitting in the hallway. She got very sleepy. "Yuffie," Leon whispered just before she drifted off to sleep. He whispered something in her ear.

0-0-0

During the middle of the night, Yuffie got up to use the bathroom. When she came out, Leon was awake and panicking.

"Nurse!" Yuffie yelled. "I NEED A NURSE!"

Doctors and nurses came rushing in. Yuffie had tears in her eyes as she hear the long beep sound of the heart monitor. She wanted to do the beeping noise again. But it wouldn't. It was just that irritated _BEEEEEEEEEEP! _sound.

"Clear!" shouted one of the nurses. The long beep sound wouldn't stop. "Clear!" They tried a few more times, but it didn't work. "Time of death: 3:13 a.m."

"NO!" Yuffie shouted. She rushed past the doctors, and rushed to Leon's side. "Leon! Wake up! Come on!" She held his hand. She laid down next to him. "Don't die on me! Please!" She was crying heavily now. "You can't die on me!" she shouted. "I love you! No!" She cried more. Finally, Cloud came in, and picked her up. Yuffie had to let go of Leon's hand. Cloud sat down in the chair next to the bed, and held Yuffie. She cried into his shoulder. "I love him! He's _my _lion! _My _lion!" She felt odd screaming that. _Her _lion? Cloud couldn't do nothing to calm her down.

0-0-0

Yuffie stared at the gravestone. It had Leon's real name on it. Squall Leonhart. Yuffie had tears streaming down her face. She couldn't believe that he was gone. Her lion was gone. It felt like she cared more for him than anyone else did.

"Well, Leon, I guess you're out of misery. You're alright now...But, uh..." She sat down in front of his grave. She didn't want to sit on top of where he was buried, it would be disrespectful. "I never got to thank you for saving my life. So, thank you so much. I'll miss ya, Squall. I'll miss ya. And some day, I'll join you." She stood up, and kissed the gravestone. "I love you, too."

Before he died, he whispered, "Yuffie, I love you."

* * *

Excuse the gammar errors. It's 11:16 at night, and I don't have time to edit the one-shot, because I'm going to pay for not going to bed, and be super tired. So, excuse me for that. This is for a stall for all my chapter stories, so...I'm not dead. Don't kill me because of the end. I've been working on this all week, and want no flames. Hope you enjoyed it!  
DivineRose2392 (who is not dead) 


End file.
